As part of The Athletic’s Free Agent Frenzy blog, Max Bultman posted an entry discussing why the Red Wings signed both James Reimer and Alex Lyon:
So, what gives? Well, Detroit certainly wasn’t messing around at this position, after overworking Ville Husso last season. When Husso was fresh, he was a very good starter for them, as seen by his play early in the season and after the All-Star Break. But when the starts piled up, it showed, and he finished with an .896 save percentage as a result.
Reimer is a veteran with a track record of legit NHL backup workloads and had performed pretty well in that capacity before a drop-off last season in San Jose, when he had an .890 save percentage in 43 games. In 2021-22, though, he posted an impressive .911 in 48 games, and is a career .911 goalie. Last year was his first career season below .900, so a bounceback is not out of the question.
He’s 35, though, so it’s entirely possible he’s fading and that trend won’t reverse. That’s why the one-year term is key — and also why it makes sense to also add Lyon, who actually started Games 1 through 4 of the playoffs for the Panthers. That speaks to a solid season for him between the NHL and AHL, posting a save percentage at or above .910 in both leagues.
While Detroit did carry three netminders at times last season, that’s a tough situation to maintain, especially early in a season, so you would expect one of the two to be waived and, ideally, play in Grand Rapids — where the Red Wings’ AHL affiliate Griffins desperately need to improve in net. Pairing an NHL veteran with top goalie prospect Sebastian Cossa seems like a natural fit in the youngsters’ progression, and it would insulate Detroit’s NHL situation more as well.
